When he reached between my legs, I arched with anticipation. My heart pounded, as his teeth pulled at my nipples.
His fingers grazed the outline of my folds. “Did you miss me, Nicci?”
I eagerly unzipped his jeans, helping him slide out of them. I ran my hands along the length of his bare back, down to his round, hard ass. He closed his eyes while my mouth traveled over his chest, tempting him with kisses.
“I never realized just how much until now,” I said, clasping his erection.
Smothering my face with his kisses, he climbed on top of me, anxious to take me. Kneeling between my legs, his lips traversed my neck, shoulders, and belly. I closed my eyes and reveled in the sensation of him. It had been so long since I had been overcome with such an intense desire.
“We have a great deal of catching up to do.” His teeth nibbled at my neck.
“Then we better get started.” I pulled his mouth hungrily down on mine.
***
We slept and made love all the rest of the afternoon. The sheets were rumpled beneath us, as I lay across his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It was calm and steady, and sounded like it would go on forever.
“I guess you really did miss me,” I said, smiling.
His laughter rumbled through the hollows of his chest like thunder. “I got the same impression. I’m glad, though. I should thank the good doctor, next time I see him.” There was a hint of jealousy in his voice.
I tightened my arms around his chest. “Michael doesn’t matter anymore.”
“He was a silly boy,” David agreed. “I knew that from the moment I saw him standing next to you at Val’s party. I realized then that I had nothing to worry about. I knew you would come back to me.”
I sat up. “Oh, that ego. Does it ever quit?”
“Not ego, Nicci. Fact. There is no one who will ever understand you more than me.” He rolled over on his side. “We are two of a kind; two odd ducks that belong together.”
“Cora said the same thing to me.”
His hand caressed the length of my body. “She told me. I went and saw her before heading to Val’s party. We talked quite a bit, mostly about you. I knew I had hurt you, but I never realized how much until Cora told me how unhappy you were.”
“That doesn’t matter anymore, David.”
“It matters to me.” His face grew somber. “You deserve to always be happy, Nicci. Remember that.”
“Someone once told me they thought happiness was an achievement to strive for, but something that could never be maintained. I think that’s what you said, isn’t it?”
He rolled on top of me, laughing. “I forgot how much I missed that mind of yours.”
I smiled seductively at him. “Is that all you missed?”
He cupped his hands around my butt, pulling my hips closer. “No, not all.”
“What else did you miss about me?” I breathlessly begged.
“I’m not sure how to put that into words.” His lips tantalized my neck. “Why don’t I just paint you a picture,” he whispered.
“That could take some time.” I ran my hands along his chest, across his tight abdomen, and down to his erection. “But I’m willing to hang around and see what you come up with.”
His body shuddered. “Good thing I still have that bulk supply of condoms,” he mumbled right before his lips came down hard on mine.
***
Eventually, we made it downstairs, and spent some time scrutinizing David’s well-stocked freezer. We grilled steaks, indulged in large amounts of Lambrusco wine, and sat around the dining room table watching the sunset. I lit some candles when it started getting dark, and David opened more wine. There was no other sound except for our conversation and the crickets outside.
“They have a good little hospital in Hammond, if you want to work. It would be close, so you wouldn’t have to drive into New Orleans all the time. You could spend more time here, with me.” He sipped his wine, leaning back in his chair and waiting for my reaction.
I was lightheaded from all the wine and exercise. “You might get bored with me underfoot every day. Besides, I have a job waiting for me in New Orleans. Actually, it’s the job Michael got me.”
He grimaced, slapping his wine glass down on the table. “Better give that up, as soon as possible. I want you here. That way I can paint you, whenever I please. You don’t need to work. We don’t need much. The house is paid for.”
I set my glass of wine down on the table. “What are you saying, David?”
He had a boyish grin on his face. “That I want you to stay here with me for the rest of our lives.” He made a serious face. “We can make it legal, if you want.”
“Don’t make it sound so painful!” I laughed. “I don’t know if I want to get married.”
“Well, I want you to be completely mine. So we’ll have to get married.” He paused, frowning. “I’m very possessive. I don’t want to share you with anyone, understand?”
“David, how would you feel about me keeping my name? That is, if we ever got married?”
He shrugged, scooping up his wine glass from the table. “I don’t care what you call yourself. Do whatever you like, as long as it makes you happy.”
“Somehow, I knew you would say that.”
“Why? Does that matter?” he asked, a bit puzzled.
“It was something that desperately mattered with Michael, but not with you.”
“You wasted enough of your life on that silly man. Let’s never mention him again.” He sounded quite dictatorial.
“Are you jealous of Michael?”
“Of what you shared with him? Yes.” He smashed his lips together. “Sorry, but it is a new emotion for me.”
I poured some more wine into my glass. “What other little bits of information should you tell me about yourself, before we proceed with this arrangement?”
“Everything I do is forever. Anyone I love, it is for always.” He reached for my hand. “And I like a light starch in all of my shirts.”
***
We soon settled into a peaceful routine. David would paint in the morning, and in the afternoon we would investigate some of the numerous antique shops around town. I wanted to fill the house with antiques and give it an old-time, homey feel. Every day, it seemed, we would discover another store and take home another piece of the past. At night, we spent our time in bed, getting to know each other all over again.
One morning, I awoke to find that David was not in the big bed with me. I pulled on his heavy blue robe and went downstairs in search of him. I found him sitting in the kitchen, drinking coffee, and watching the sunrise. He turned to me and smiled, as I entered the room.
“Hey, couldn’t sleep?” I kissed his cheek.
He pulled me into his lap, and I nestled against his chest. “I have something for you.” His voice sounded strange.
“What? Another little table or another electrified oil lamp?” We had been buying a lot of old lamps and small curio tables. David seemed to like collecting them.
“No, it’s in there.” He nodded toward the dining room.
I climbed off his lap, amused, and went into the room to see what it was.
In the middle of the dining room table there was an old typewriter with a big red bow on it. I hurried to the machine and fingered the keys. It smelled of fresh oil, and some of the keys looked like they had been recently replaced. The new ones glistened amid the duller ones.
“I found it before you came, and brought it to someone to be restored. It’s as good as new. I know it’s not a computer, but it is sturdy and has more character.” He wrapped his arms around my waist. “I want you to start writing again.”
“It has been awhile. I don’t know, David. What would I write about?”
“Write all those wonderful stories floating around in your head.” He kissed my cheek. “It’s time to start writing again, Nicci.”
“Why do you want me to write?”
“You will never feel compl
ete until you do. I can never fill all your days…and your heart was never really in nursing. Sooner or later, you would have realized you needed something more in your life. Something that makes you feel like you are using all of your brain and not just half of it.”
“Do you feel complete when you paint?”
“Only when I paint you.”
“David?”
“Mmmm?” he murmured in my ear.
“I have to know something. What exactly did you do…before?”
He let go of me and had a seat at the table, sighing as he sank into his chair. His eyes carefully examined mine.
“I stole secrets. I was usually hired to collect industrial secrets wanted by a business rival or competitor. There were times when I was sent out to gather personal secrets, as well. Things that could be used against an individual for blackmail or leverage.” He peered out the window. “I specialized in obtaining information from lonely and bored wives of wealthy businessmen. I’m not proud of what I did, but I am finished with it.”
“How did Sammy find you?”
He turned to me. “Through some business associates I had worked for in the past. They recommended me.”
“Was it lucrative?” I asked, intrigued, as I took a seat in the chair next to him.
“Yes, very. But it was also a lonely life. Relationships are hard to maintain when you disappear for months at a time. Friends can ask too many questions, and women eventually want a commitment that you cannot make. So, you learn to keep your distance. You also learn to be a bit of a wanderer. I had an apartment I visited two or three times a year in New York. Otherwise, I was mostly on the road, living in apartments, hotel rooms, or the houses of strangers.”
I touched the scar above his right cheek. “Was it dangerous?”
“At times.” He nodded. “High power business secrets are worth a lot of money to the right people. It had moments where it got pretty damn scary.”
I curled against him and he pulled me into his arms. “I’m glad you’re finished with all of that. Now you can stop running from the world and settle down in it.”
“I’d like that,” he breathed. “To stay here, and be left in peace with you, is all I desire.” His body suddenly tensed. “Nicci, I want you to promise me something,” he whispered into my hair. “Promise me that no matter what happens, you will never forget how much I love you.”
“I promise.” I nuzzled my head against his chest. “What could happen, David?”
“Nothing, Nicci,” he asserted, as his lips grazed my forehead. “Absolutely nothing.”
***
A week later, I was upstairs in the study typing and David was in the patio painting, when my phone rang. It was my father.
“I need you to come in town and go to your Uncle Ned’s office.” My father sounded very short on the phone.
“Is something wrong?” I was a little alarmed.
“No. I have finally taken your advice and told Lance to give up his half of the company. He is going to sign over all of his shares to you.”
“Me? What am I supposed to do with it?”
“I’ll run everything, don’t worry. I just need Lance’s financial drain out of my hair. I’m getting ready to launch a new division of the company in plastics recycling, but I can’t get the damn financing from the bank until your uncle is off the books. I’ll explain the rest when you get to town. Meet me at The Grill Room for lunch when you are finished at Ned’s.”
I hung up in a slight state of shock. I was going to inherit half of the company about twenty years sooner than expected. It would be a great deal of responsibility and, eventually, a great deal of work. I went downstairs to tell David.
“I have to go to New Orleans tomorrow, early. It seems Uncle Lance has finally agreed to give up his half of Beauvoir Scrap. He is signing it all over to me.”
David gave a small cry of celebration. “About bloody time,” he said, sounding more Irish than ever. “I told your father to do that months ago. I knew he couldn’t keep Beauvoir Scrap viable with Lance on the books. I’m glad he’s finally forging ahead with that plastics company.”
I gaped at him, amazed. “You knew?”
“Of course. I told him he needed to diversify out of the market, to protect himself from another plot like Sammy’s.” He wiped the brush in his hand on a rag. “Why don’t you invite your father up to see the place? He hasn’t seen all the work we’ve done. I have some errands I can run tomorrow while you’re out.”
“What errands?” We had run errands together for weeks. I couldn’t imagine what else he would need.
He grinned. “You’ll see tomorrow when you come home.”
“See what?” I persisted.
David chuckled. “If I told you it would not be a surprise then, would it?”
“I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Nicci, allow me the luxury of trying to surprise you with something for once in our relationship.” His eyes pleaded with me.
“All right, but I don’t like it.”
***
The next morning I awoke at sunrise, leaving David asleep in bed. The traffic into the city would be slow, and my appointment with Uncle Ned was early, followed by lunch with my father. Gazing down at David, sleeping peacefully, I hated to leave him. I wanted to never leave his side again. I leaned across the bed and kissed his face, which was smashed against the pillow.
“I love you,” I whispered.
The traffic took longer than expected and I was twenty minutes late to Ned’s office. When I arrived, Uncle Ned was waiting, along with a secretary and a notary. The meeting went on for hours. An endless mound of transfer of stock and tax papers had to be signed and notarized. That was followed by a lengthy discussion about profit disbursement. By the time I walked out of Ned’s office, I was beginning to wonder if this was a wise idea.
My father was sitting quietly at a table in The Grill Room, reading the menu, when I arrived.
I took the menu from his hands. “Hello, Dad.”
He smiled while I took the seat across from him. “You’re glowing.”
I blushed. “Does it show?”
“All over. I haven’t seen you this happy since…well, since you were with him before.” He inspected me with his reading glasses. “You’ve changed. I’m not quite sure what it is. Things must better with David this time round.” He took off his reading glasses and put them away in his suit jacket pocket.
“Better, definitely. He wants to make it legal.”
Dad cried out happily and clapped his hands together. “I knew it! I am very happy for you, Nicci. You won’t have ugly children with David.” I rolled my eyes at him, but his exuberance would not be contained. “I’ll have to call Val and Lance. They’ll be overjoyed.”
The waiter brought me a menu. While I looked over my options, I said, “I thought I would never get out of Ned’s office. What the hell are you and Uncle Lance trying to do? Drive me insane?”
My father took a sip of water. “Ned is very thorough. He wanted to make sure you understood everything you were signing. Ned and Lance finished up everything yesterday before your uncle left town. I was waiting for you to sign all the papers before I went ahead with the plastics deal. I’m sorry I couldn’t meet you over at Ned’s but I have been on the phone all morning, getting contractors lined up for the new plant.”
“Where did Uncle Lance go?”
“Tahiti. Married wife number five. A blonde named Linda.”
“The one from Val’s party?”
“Now you see why I needed you to sign the papers.” He patted my hand and his smile fell. “By the way, Michael is already telling everyone that you left and it’s all over. The news went around town like wildfire. Everyone was quite shocked.” He snickered. “Except Sammy, of course. She called to congratulate me for getting you to dump the moron. It seems Eddie is back from Europe and has filed for a divorce from Colleen.”
“Oh, poor Colleen.” I thought of all the times sh
e had followed Eddie like a homeless puppy, waiting to be noticed.
“Not really. It seems Colleen has taken up with Parker Roy. They moved in together last week.”
“Well, good for her. Val once said everything works out in the end. How right she was.” I smiled, thinking about that day at her house so long ago.
We ate our lunch, laughing and catching up with all the news about town. We had lost each other when David left and now it was like things had never changed. We were close again, closer than ever.
It was well after three when I headed back to Hammond. I had called Ellen Kirby and told her I would not be starting my new job at the psychiatric hospital. I informed her I was relocating to Hammond and would pursue work there. She must have heard about me and Michael, because she did not sound too surprised.
The truth was, I didn’t know if I would ever work in nursing. I didn’t feel the overwhelming urge to prove myself to the world, as I had done before. I just wanted to enjoy my time with David and see what happened. I was in no hurry to go anywhere. I was happy where I was.
When I made it home, it was still light, but late in the afternoon. As I pulled into the driveway, I didn’t see the red Jeep in the garage, so I figured David was still out on his mysterious errand. I went inside and decided to cook a victory dinner to celebrate our new beginning.
***
About an hour later, there was a knock at the door. I ran to get it, thinking it was part of the surprise. A local police officer stood before me, flushed from the late summer heat and holding his hat in his hand. He appeared startled when I opened the door.
“Sorry to disturb you, ma’am. We are trying to locate any family of one David Alexander,” he pronounced, reading the name from a small piece of paper in his hand.
“I am his fiancée,” I managed, figuring the title would avoid any confusion.
The man’s face became somber and he cleared his throat. “I am sorry, ma’am. There’s been, ah, an accident. Mr. Alexander, your fiancé, was found by his Jeep on Casper road.” He looked down at the ground. “Witnesses say he was pulled over, helping someone change a tire.” The man paused and cleared his throat again. “He was shot once in the back of the head. He’s dead.” My vision blurred, as I heard him faintly say, “I’m so sorry.”
The Nicci Beauvoir Collection: The Complete Nicci Beauvoir Series Page 31